- 8 hours ago
Will Ferrell turned “Saturday Night Live” into a comedy playground with unforgettable characters, priceless impressions, and total chaos. Join us as we revisit his funniest and most iconic sketch moments, from reality TV absurdity and political satire to legendary recurring bits that still get quoted today. Which Ferrell favorite never fails to make you laugh?
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00:00That's all the time we have.
00:03Good night.
00:04Would you get that off me?
00:06Welcome to Ms. Mojo.
00:08And today, we're counting down our picks
00:10for the most iconic and hilarious
00:12Saturday Night Live sketches featuring Will Ferrell.
00:15Don't raise your voice at me.
00:16I am not raising my voice.
00:18You do not talk to me like that.
00:20I said, you don't talk to me like that.
00:22I work too hard to deal with this stuff.
00:24I work too hard.
00:26Number 10, reality stars.
00:28Will Ferrell and Cecily Strong go full Bravo nightmare
00:32in this unhinged 2018 sketch.
00:35They play a hyper-sculpted,
00:37deeply unserious reality TV couple
00:40with absolutely no self-awareness
00:42who join their friends for a backyard cookout.
00:45We just started our own line of weight loss wine.
00:48How cool is that?
00:49Yeah, it's called Slimfendell.
00:52It's got caffeine, Olestra, and Fen-Fan in it.
00:55You get so much energy,
00:57and then you go to the bathroom 11 times a day.
00:59The two bicker, flirt, overshare, and spiral
01:02while insisting they are the picture of luxury.
01:06Ferrell looks like a man who lost a fight
01:08with a tanning bed and still thinks he won,
01:11which already does half the work.
01:13Then he starts talking.
01:15Excuse me?
01:16Hey, don't you dare yell at my wife.
01:19I ought to hit you over the head with my dog.
01:22It's like a real housewife's fever dream.
01:24Every line feral and strong utter lands even funnier than the last,
01:28and it's obvious that they will be quoted for years to come.
01:32Celebrity culture has never been skewered quite so beautifully.
01:36My wife can't have chicken.
01:37What is it, God?
01:39What is a chicken?
01:40She can't have it.
01:42Chicken.
01:43Bird, what is this?
01:44Chicken, like he said.
01:45My wife can't have chicken.
01:49Number nine, Cast List 2.
01:53Mr. Koenig, how's the cast list coming along?
01:56Slowly.
01:57This show needs to be a hit after the fall musical flopped.
02:01But I still contend that doing the color purple
02:04with an all-white cast was brave.
02:06One of the biggest crimes in modern SNL
02:09was the incredible Cast List sketch
02:11from Will Ferrell's 2019 hosting episode,
02:14Getting Cut for Time.
02:15Miles, would you kiss a girl with tongue
02:19if the role required it?
02:20I know your family is the difficult kind of Christian.
02:24Um, I need to pray on that.
02:26See what God leads me to.
02:28Tell God I need an answer now.
02:30Fans loved it so much
02:32that the show finally revived it
02:34when Ferrell returned to host the season 51 finale.
02:37Ferrell once again plays Mr. Koenig,
02:40a catty theater teacher
02:41who seems to feed off his students' anxiety
02:44while unveiling the cast list for the school play.
02:47You're in the mix for Danny Zuko.
02:49But I don't know if audiences are ready
02:51to accept a ginger as a leading man.
02:55Would you be willing to dye your hair black?
02:59Of course.
03:00All of your hair?
03:02The sketch cleverly gives nearly every cast member
03:05a chance to shine
03:06as they bounce off a comedy legend
03:08who clearly influenced many of them.
03:11Ferrell is predictably fantastic,
03:13but the real knockout comes from
03:15former castmate Molly Shannon,
03:17whose surprise appearance
03:18as the eccentric choir teacher Miss Peebles
03:21completely steals the sketch.
03:23Sing me the highest note that you can.
03:25Okay.
03:26Oh, come on.
03:28You can do better than that.
03:30Tummy in.
03:31Yeah.
03:32Oh, you got nice abs.
03:34Ass out.
03:36And you gotta scratch those off.
03:40Ah!
03:41Ah!
03:42Ah!
03:44Number 8.
03:45Get off the shed, new friends.
03:48Hey, Brandon.
03:49Michael.
03:50Need you guys to do me a favor
03:52and get off the shed.
03:55Need you to be a buddy
03:56and get off the shed, okay?
03:58Thanks.
03:59Well, I hope you two are hungry.
04:00We got a ton of food here.
04:01This was one of Ferrell's earliest breakout sketches.
04:04And what a great introduction it was.
04:06He plays a suburban dad
04:08trying to make polite conversation with neighbors
04:11while his sons keep climbing onto the family shed
04:13like feral raccoons.
04:15That's the whole premise.
04:16And it somehow becomes a masterclass in escalation.
04:20Actually, this is a cute story.
04:21We met on a golf course in Scotland when we were-
04:24Get off the shed!
04:26How about next Sunday?
04:27Pebble Brook?
04:2812 o'clock tee-off time.
04:29What do you say?
04:31Sounds good.
04:32Ferrell keeps toggling between casual small talk
04:35and full-throated parental rage with terrifying ease.
04:39His gentle calls for the boys to get off the shed
04:41quickly mutate into threats
04:43no sane father should be making in broad daylight.
04:46I will punch you in the face
04:48if you don't get off the shed!
04:51Now get off the shed!
04:53Get off the shed!
04:54Get off the damn shed!
04:56Ferrell sells every turn with absolute conviction.
04:59And the contrast between polite suburban manners
05:02and volcanic anger makes the whole thing sing.
05:06Excuse me, can you hold on to that for a second?
05:09Okay, so you've been showing off for the Taylors, huh?
05:12Is that it?
05:13Well, I'm gonna put on a little show of my own.
05:16I'm gonna give you the beating of a lifetime
05:18in front of these people.
05:19You happy now?
05:19Number seven, space, the infinite frontier,
05:23Dr. Kent Waller.
05:24Will Ferrell's Harry Carey impression
05:26was never built on accuracy.
05:28It was built on chaos,
05:30which is exactly why it worked so beautifully.
05:32Let me ask, what's your favorite planet?
05:36Well, I don't have a favorite.
05:39I find them all fascinating.
05:41They're all part of a-
05:42Mine's the sun!
05:46It always has been.
05:48I like it because it's like the king of planets.
05:50In this installment of Space, the Infinite Frontier,
05:54Ferrell's Carey is meant to interview astronomer
05:56Dr. Kent Waller, played by Jeff Goldblum.
05:59However, he immediately abandons anything resembling science
06:03and ferrells into a string of absurd questions,
06:06including whether he would eat the moon
06:08if it were made of barbecued spare ribs.
06:10Hey, now, Kent, we all know that the moon
06:13is not made of green cheese.
06:16Yes, that's true, Harry.
06:17But, but what if it were made of barbecued spare ribs?
06:22Would you eat it then?
06:24What?
06:24I know I would.
06:25Heck, I'd have seconds.
06:27Ferrell's genius here is his total confidence.
06:30He delivers every bizarre thought
06:31like it is both urgent and scientifically sound.
06:34The bug-eyed intensity, the gravelly shout,
06:37the complete inability to stay on topic.
06:40It is nonsense performed with such conviction,
06:43it becomes transcendent.
06:44If you had a choice between being the top scientist
06:47in your field or getting mad cow disease,
06:50what would it be?
06:53Well, of course I would choose
06:54to be the top scientist in my field.
06:56Oh, good.
06:57I was worried you'd choose mad cow.
06:59Number six, first presidential debate,
07:02Al Gore and George W. Bush.
07:04Political impressions live or die on specificity,
07:08and Will Ferrell's George W. Bush had it in abundance.
07:11I don't know what that was all about.
07:15But I will tell you this.
07:18Don't mess with Texas.
07:19During the 2000 presidential election cycle,
07:22Ferrell's caricature of the 43rd president
07:24became a cultural phenomenon.
07:26It remains one of the most influential political impressions
07:29in SNL history.
07:31Facing off against Daryl Hammond as Al Gore,
07:34Ferrell plays Bush as charming, confused,
07:36and just slightly delighted to be included.
07:39First of all, I think that any instability
07:42in that first country you mentioned
07:47is troubling.
07:49And clearly the second guy you spoke of
07:53beat the first guy.
07:55The resemblance helped, sure,
07:56but the real magic was in the choices.
07:59Ferrell leaned into Bush's verbal stumbles
08:01and strange pauses,
08:02creating a version of Dubya
08:04that felt instantly iconic.
08:06This was also the sketch
08:07that gave pop culture strategery,
08:09the fake Bushism Ferrell made famous.
08:12We are almost out of time,
08:13so I will instead ask each candidate
08:15to sum up in a single word
08:17the best argument for his candidacy.
08:19Governor Bush?
08:22Strategery.
08:23Number five, short shorts for the USA.
08:26In the weeks following the 9-11 tragedy,
08:29laughter felt almost impossible.
08:31When SNL returned to air for season 27,
08:34the pressure to find levity
08:35without being dismissive was immense.
08:38Leave it to Ferrell
08:39to thread that needle perfectly.
08:41Look, the memo said
08:42we relaxed the office dress code
08:44to allow showings of patriotism.
08:47So, this coffee's really good.
08:50In this sketch,
08:51his character Dale McGrew
08:53arrives at a workplace
08:54patriotic dress day
08:56wearing a USA crop top
08:57and scandalously tiny
08:59American flag short shorts
09:01that leave absolutely nothing
09:02to the imagination.
09:04It's just that those shorts
09:04don't even look comfortable.
09:06Okay?
09:07I mean,
09:08we can see your bulge.
09:12Okay, first of all,
09:13they're extremely comfortable.
09:15Uh,
09:16and second of all,
09:18at this point in your life,
09:19if you haven't seen a bulge,
09:21well, I just feel sorry for it.
09:22The premise is already insane,
09:24but Ferrell plays Dale
09:25with such sincere pride
09:27that it somehow becomes even funnier.
09:29It proved that sometimes
09:31the most generous thing
09:32a comedian can do
09:33is look completely ridiculous
09:35so the rest of us
09:36can breathe again.
09:37Just remember this.
09:39The US of A
09:41is the greatest country
09:43on the face of the earth,
09:45and for that,
09:45I will make no apologies.
09:48Number four,
09:49The Lovers with Barbara and Dave.
09:52Roger and Virginia Clarvin
09:54are the couple
09:54you'd never,
09:55ever want to get seated
09:56next to anywhere.
09:58Ferrell and Rachel Dratch
10:00play these two
10:00oversharing,
10:01perpetually amorous
10:03lovers
10:03with such unhinged commitment
10:05that it's impossible
10:06not to cringe
10:07and cackle simultaneously.
10:09Dave,
10:09may I share something with you?
10:11I guess.
10:12I'm really just trying to, uh...
10:13I find when one
10:15first enters
10:16the scalding waters
10:17of the hot tub,
10:20it is not unlike
10:21your first encounter
10:23with a new lover.
10:24In this Drew Barrymore
10:25hosted installment,
10:26they trap Barbara
10:27and Dave in a hot tub
10:28and proceed to overshare
10:30at criminal levels
10:31about their romantic exploits.
10:33Ferrell's timing here
10:34is exquisite.
10:35He plays Roger
10:36with the smug confidence
10:37of a man who thinks
10:38every sentence he says
10:39is devastatingly seductive.
10:41Let the screams
10:42of our lovemaking
10:43reverberate off the roof
10:45of the Welshly arms.
10:47Oh, lover.
10:48And into the night sky.
10:50Oh, lover.
10:51Ow.
10:52Ow, my back.
10:53Watching him
10:54try to keep a straight face
10:55while Dratch offers
10:56spiced meat
10:57is half the joy.
10:59And once he and Dratch
11:00start cracking,
11:01the sketch somehow
11:02gets even better.
11:04We always order them up
11:05special from the Welsh.
11:08We always order them up
11:09And keep them here
11:10in this igloo cooler.
11:11Number 3
11:12Spartan cheerleaders
11:14at tryouts
11:15Craig and Ariana,
11:17the aggressively enthusiastic
11:18Spartan cheerleaders
11:19played by Will Ferrell
11:20and Sherry O'Terry,
11:22remain one of SNL's
11:23most iconic duos.
11:25Take a chance.
11:26Drop your pants.
11:27Pee in the cup.
11:28Dr. Spartan's in the house
11:30and he will fix you
11:31while bring it down now.
11:32Oomph.
11:32Oomph.
11:33Oomph.
11:33Oomph.
11:34Oomph.
11:35Oomph.
11:35Oomph.
11:36Oomph.
11:36Oomph.
11:36Oomph.
11:36Oomph.
11:37Take it off.
11:37They are wildly overconfident,
11:40slightly deranged,
11:41and nowhere near as polished
11:42as they think they are.
11:44Ferrell's Craig
11:45is the secret weapon.
11:46He attacks every chant
11:48with the intensity
11:48of a man trying
11:49to summon school spirit
11:51through sheer force
11:52of pelvic thrusts.
12:10His physical comedy
12:12is outrageous.
12:13Paired that
12:14with O'Terry's
12:15matching chaos
12:16and the whole thing
12:17becomes beautifully unhinged.
12:19The recurring sketch
12:20debuted in 1995
12:21and ran throughout
12:23Ferrell's tenure,
12:24spawning multiple
12:25beloved installments.
12:26This one, however,
12:27remains the fan favorite
12:29of the bunch.
12:29It was an awesome idea
12:30to practice all night.
12:31Yeah, and my parents
12:32will never know I'm gone.
12:33I put my brother's
12:34blow-up doll
12:35underneath my sheets.
12:36Oh.
12:37Oh.
12:38The one that looks like
12:39a really surprised
12:40Sheena Easton?
12:41Number two.
12:43Celebrity Jeopardy!
12:44French Stewart,
12:45Burt Reynolds,
12:46and Sean Connery.
12:47Playing Alex Trebek
12:48required Ferrell
12:49to do something
12:50genuinely difficult.
12:51Play the straight man
12:53while absolute chaos
12:54erupted around him.
12:55He pulled it off
12:56flawlessly.
12:57Turd Ferguson!
13:01Yeah, what do you want?
13:05You buzzed in.
13:06No, I didn't.
13:08Yes, you did.
13:09Yeah, well,
13:09that's your opinion.
13:12I hate my job.
13:13As host of Celebrity Jeopardy!
13:15Ferrell's Trebek
13:16is increasingly irritated,
13:18deeply exhausted,
13:19and one insult away
13:20from a complete breakdown.
13:22With Daryl Hammond's
13:23Sean Connery
13:24derailing every category
13:26and Norm MacDonald's
13:27Burt Reynolds
13:28proudly insisting
13:29on being called
13:30Turd Ferguson,
13:31Ferrell becomes
13:32the perfect center
13:33of gravity.
13:34Good lord!
13:35We would have accepted
13:37Bow Wow
13:37or Rough.
13:39Oh, Rough.
13:40Just the way
13:41your mother
13:41likes it, Trebek.
13:45Come on,
13:46that is way out of line.
13:47His genius
13:48is all in the restraint.
13:49He doesn't need
13:50to be the loudest person
13:51in the sketch
13:52because his mounting contempt
13:53is the punchline.
13:55Every sigh,
13:56every glare,
13:57every muttered correction lands.
13:59The impression
14:00won the approval
14:00of Trebek himself.
14:02Finally,
14:02Mr. Connery,
14:03the category was numbers
14:05and you wrote
14:06a letter V.
14:08Well, I tell you what,
14:09my friend,
14:11V is a Roman numeral,
14:12so despite your best efforts,
14:14you answered correctly.
14:15Let's see what you wagered.
14:18Suck it, Trebek.
14:19Before we unveil our top pick,
14:21here are a few
14:22honorable mentions.
14:23Dissing your dog.
14:25Tired of rolled up newspapers?
14:26An acerbic tongue
14:27might be a better way
14:28to train your dog.
14:29Oh, right, Margaret.
14:31You wanted prime rib.
14:32Here's the deal.
14:33The palm wasn't
14:34taking reservations.
14:36You want to try Morton's
14:37because I understand
14:38they have a new chef.
14:39So for now,
14:40let's just go with the Alpo, okay?
14:42I know it's not your first choice,
14:43but keep in mind,
14:44you're a f***ing dog.
14:46Dr. Beeman's office,
14:47test results.
14:49Farrell's incompetent doctor
14:50bungles the test results
14:51so badly,
14:52he causes everyone to break.
14:54Look, I couldn't think
14:55of anything good.
14:59Uh...
15:01The truth is...
15:04we misplaced your baby.
15:07Dysfunctional family dinner.
15:08A suburban dad's
15:09passive aggression
15:10transforms into
15:11a full-blown meltdown
15:13at dinner.
15:13You don't talk to me like that.
15:14Shut up.
15:15You don't talk to me like that.
15:17I do not believe
15:17that you are in my life.
15:17I am a division manager.
15:19That is very important.
15:20Do not raise your voice.
15:21Very important.
15:28Janet Reno's dance party
15:30with Rudy Giuliani.
15:32Farrell's take on Janet Reno
15:33is towering,
15:34terrifying,
15:35and absurdly hilarious.
15:36All right, tough guy.
15:38If I win,
15:39you've got to tell everybody
15:40that I'm the boss of you.
15:42How does that sound,
15:42you big baby?
15:43Janet, I wouldn't hit anybody,
15:45let alone a middle-aged woman.
15:47What's that fist?
15:49He talks too much?
15:52Then I think it's time
15:53for Operation Shuddy Uppy.
15:55The Sensitive Drill Sergeant.
15:57Bootcamp takes a weird turn
15:59when a sensitive drill sergeant
16:00opens up to his troops.
16:02Do you need to be
16:02a NASA scientist
16:03to realize how uncomfortable
16:05I am opening myself
16:07up to you right now?
16:08NASA!
16:10Well, maybe that's the problem
16:11right there, Sarge.
16:12Do you think we're having
16:13a comfortable little chat
16:14over a couple of beers
16:15at the Regal Bigal?
16:17If you love games,
16:19be sure to check out
16:20WatchMojo's new game,
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16:22Just launched for purchase
16:23at terribleinfluence.com.
16:25Terrible Influence
16:26is a satirical board game
16:27about the dark side of fame
16:29from the writer
16:29of The Most Popular Girls
16:30in School and Us.
16:32WatchMojo.
16:32Boom.
16:33I can make an apology video.
16:35Oh, you so would.
16:36Click on the link
16:37in the description
16:37to check out the game
16:38and be the first
16:39to play Terrible Influence.
16:42Number 1.
16:43More Cowbell.
16:44To be honest, fellas,
16:45it was sounding great,
16:46but I could have used
16:48a little more cowbell.
16:53So, let's take it again.
16:55And Gene.
16:56Yeah.
16:57Really explore the studio space
16:58this time.
16:59You got it, Bruce.
17:00I mean, really.
17:01Yeah.
17:02Explore the space.
17:03Some sketches become classics.
17:05More Cowbell became comedy folklore.
17:08Set during a fictional recording session
17:10for Blue Oyster Cult's
17:11Don't Fear the Reaper,
17:12the sketch gives
17:13Will Ferrell's Gene Frankel
17:15one job.
17:16Play Cowbell.
17:17He performs that job
17:19like his life
17:19depends on it.
17:31Ferrell turns Gene
17:32into a sweaty,
17:34pelvic-thrusting
17:34force of nature,
17:36hammering that cowbell
17:37with terrifying enthusiasm.
17:39The tiny shirt,
17:40the intense eye contact,
17:42the physical commitment,
17:43all of it is flawless.
17:45And if Bruce Dickinson
17:46wants more cowbell,
17:47we should probably
17:47give him more cowbell.
17:48Say, baby.
17:50And Bobby,
17:51you are right.
17:51I am being selfish.
17:52But the last time I checked,
17:54we don't have
17:55a whole lot of songs
17:56that feature the cowbell.
17:57I gotta have
17:58more cowbell, baby.
17:59As Christopher Walken,
18:01playing producer
18:01Bruce Dickinson,
18:02famously demands
18:03more cowbell,
18:05Ferrell pushes
18:05and pushes,
18:06sending nearly everyone
18:07in the room
18:08over the edge.
18:09It is absurd,
18:11iconic,
18:11endlessly quotable,
18:13and maybe the purest example
18:14of Ferrell's comic genius
18:16on SNL.
18:23Which Will Ferrell sketch
18:25always leaves you
18:26on the floor?
18:26Let us know
18:27in the comments.
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